How old was your child when you made the transition from car seat to high back booster?

[gbailey]

Trying to figure out if it's time to get DD a booster seat but all of the info I'm finding is conflicting regarding age, height and weight.

[MCatLvrMom2A&X]

My dd was just shy of 4yo and over 40pds when I put her in a booster. I would have loved to have kept her in a harness for a lot longer but I was unable to find a harness seat that went over 40pds here. I didnt have the internet back then so couldnt order online.

My ds is still in his 5 pt harness and he is 6y5m and weighs around 50pds I was able to order his harnessed seat off line. He will stay in it until he reaches the height/weight limit on the seat.

[broodymama]

My oldest is 6.5 and 49 lbs, he is still harnessed in a Radian 65. When he outgrows it by height then I'll move him into a HBB. DD1 (4.5) isn't even close to being mature enough to sit in a booster correctly yet.

[chel]

Dd1 was a little over 4. This was over 6 yr ago when she outgrew her a/o. It was a crappy seat, but this was back when over the head shields were still very popular

Dd2 will move to a booster when she outgrows her true fit.

[earthmama369]

My oldest (6 years old) is mature enough to ride safely in a booster, but she's still too small for a booster. She fits in her 5-point Britax fine at 44 pounds and 47 inches. So we're keeping her there for the time being.

[blessedwithboys]

I did everything wrong with ds1.  I FF'ed too early, used a booster too early, and stopped using a booster too early.  I Iet him use the adult belt waaay too early but put him back in a booster after speaking to a tech.  He used the booster until his 11th b-day and sat in the backseat until his 12th b-day.

Ds2 went from a 5pt harness to a booster when he was 5y3m, the week he started kindy.  I had no issues with him being the only harnessed kid in his class.  We switched bc I weighed him to make notes in his baby book as he got ready for school and realized he had had a growth spurt and was now 2lbs over the limit for the harness.

I'm not a CPST, but I would say that if your seat goes to 40lbs, you should stay harnessed to 40 lbs and if you have one of the newer seats that can harness up to the 60/65lb range and your dc is still within the limits for height, you should continue harnessing as long as possible.

Now, if it were me, and I had a 40lb-limit seat and my kiddo couldn't be trusted in a booster bc of age (My niece was a chunky 3yo so my sis put her in a booster, but she was too developmentally immature to sit right, so she put her in a harnessed seat with a higher limit until she was old enough as well as big enough to use a booster.), I would shell out for a higher limit seat.

Can you tell us your dd's age in months, as well as height and weight?  Also, what seat do you have currently?

Edited by blessedwithboys - 4/1/11 at 2:31pm

[Drummer's Wife]

5-6, depending on the kid.  They were each well over 40 lbs and too tall for their harness (I had/have seats with limits up to 65 lbs harnessed). 

[SubliminalDarkness]

With DS1, he was just over 5 and about 40 lbs. when we put him in a booster. Looking back, that was too small.

With DS2, he's now 4 and about 45lbs. His current seats will allow him to stay in a 5-point a while longer, but I plan to buy a couple of Nautiluses so he can stay harnessed for a few more years. He does not sit up at all in a booster, and I would constantly be worried he's not sitting right. 

[DahliaRW]

The biggest factor is maturity.  The child has to be mature enough to sit properly in the belt 100% of the time.  They also should be a minimal of 4yos and 40lbs is ideal, though I wouldn't hesitate to booster a mature 6 yo who only weighed 35lbs.

My oldest was ready at 4 1/2.  My other two are not 4 yet, so it remains to be seen...

[Peony]

DD1 had just turned 7. I had tried previously but she wasn't mature enough. DD2 is 4.5 and will be harnessed until she turns 5 and then we will switch, I don't think she will have a problem. 

[alegna]

I started letting dd ride in a booster some of the time around 6yrs 3 months and 40lbs.  At 6.5yrs and 43 lbs it still depends on the trip.  Booster when she's calm and cooperative and the trip is short.  Harnessed if it's a long ride or she's bugging her brother  lol  (the booster is next to him, the harness is on the outside)

-Angela

[Llyra]

I moved DD1 to a booster at 4 1/2 and about 38 pounds. She'd outgrown her seat by height-- she's always been absurdly tall. At that time, there were fewer options for seats to keep kids harnessed longer, and I was less informed in general. She did fine-- she is a placid child, and therefore would sit any way I told her to sit, and she fit well in the booster because she was so tall.

My twins are 4 now, and harnessed in Radian 65s. I think I will keep them harnessed until they outgrow the seats, or until age six, whichever arrives first. DS in particular I sometimes think isn't mature enough for a booster, especially. DD2 sometimes rides in a Turbobooster in my other car, on Thursday nights when I have a complicated situation with my work and and DH's work and picking up DD1.

[PlayaMama]

ds was six and almost 50 pounds. he's done really really well, and probably could have switched earlier. he still rides in his boulevard in dh's car but he'll outgrow that in probably a month or two.

[love4bob]

I just recently switched dd1 who is 4 and 41 lbs. She is mature enough to sit properly in it, and always make sure she is buckled and sitting up straight. I mainly switched her because she sits in the back seat on our van, so I have to climb in to the van to buckle/unbuckle her. She can buckle her harness, but not unbuckle, and it is getting more and more difficult for me to climb in and out of the van every time(we are in the car a lot). She does really well and can buckle and unbuckle her seatbelt on her own.

[Tilia]

DD is still harnessed at age 5, 50 inches, 60 pounds.  She is in a Regent, now called a Frontier.  It harnesses until 80 pounds, and she is on the third from the top strap slots.  She is not ready for a booster.  She still falls asleep, and wants to sit with her feet up.  She is the only kid in her preschool class that is harnessed.  Everyone else is in boosters.

[ssh]

We have a Nautilus and had to change it to the high back booster mode a couple of months after DD turned 5. She was about 57 pounds. She's 45.5 inches tall right now at almost 5.5 but I'm not too sure how tall she was then. Her torso is long though and she does wear a bigger size in shirts and dresses than she does pants.

[Owen'nZoe]

My son switched from his Radian to a booster at 6 1/2, 60 pounds, largely because his younger brother was about to outgrow his seat, and we needed the Radian. DS1 does great in the booster, but I wish we could have kept him in the Radian a little longer, because he could buckle and unbuckle himself. He just turned 7 and is still having trouble buckling the seatbelt himself.

[LynnS6]

Ds, right about age 5, when his torso got too long for his carseat harness straps. Dd was 5 years 3 months when she outgrew the harnessed seat weight wise. We moved both into a high backed booster + adult lap belt. Ds stayed in the high backed booster until he outgrew it at age 8 years 10 months. (He's tall for his age, and he has an especially long torso). I expect dd will be in the booster until age 10 or so, depending on when she gets her growth spurt.

[Norabella]

Originally Posted by LynnS6 

Ds, right about age 5, when his torso got too long for his carseat harness straps. Dd was 5 years 3 months when she outgrew the harnessed seat weight wise. We moved both into a high backed booster + adult lap belt. Ds stayed in the high backed booster until he outgrew it at age 8 years 10 months. (He's tall for his age, and he has an especially long torso). I expect dd will be in the booster until age 10 or so, depending on when she gets her growth spurt.

I'm assuming that you mean adult lap/shoulder belt but just wanted to clarify for other readers, a booster should NEVER be used with only a lap belt.

[jenniferlynne]

DS was moved to a booster when he was about 5.5 years old because we moved to Europe and his Regent was just too massive for the little cars here.  He was definitely ready at that point and was well over the 40 lb. minimum (in fact, he was pushing 60 lbs!).  I just moved DD to a booster at 4 years 6 months, 45 lbs..  I could've kept her in her Radian for a while longer but it was a hassle to buckle her in and I was a little nervous about using my American seat here in Europe (technically, it's illegal) and there aren't any harnessing seats over 40 lbs. here with the exception of the Swedish ones.  Since she's very mature and I trust her to sit properly in a booster, I wasn't worried about switching her.  The booster I got is very solid, has great side-impact protection and secures to the car with ISOFIX, so I feel comfortable with it.  And she's much happier being able to buckle herself in!